Explaining March Madness
This is the time of year when thousands of wives across America are being ignored. The phenomenon is referred to as March Madness and wives either love it or hate it. For those of you who do not get into the madness I thought I would offer a little help in understanding it. Today’s post offers the top three reasons why men love the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Games are easier to predict than our wive’s. Sure, there are a lot of surprises in the tournament. But it is still easier to explain how a school nobody has ever heard of just beat the number one team in the nation than it is to explain most of the things our wives do.
We get points for being right. I don’t think I need to elaborate on this. There are not many situations where men get points for being right – even if it was just a guess.
Statistics and guts. It is a known fact that men love statistics. Well, we don’t really love them but we spout them off as if we do. Creating a bracket showing who we think will win gives us another excuse to rattle off shooting percentages, turnover ratios, etc. Well, at least 87.4% of us will use statistics to justify our choices. The other 12.6% will just “go with their gut.” And, trust me, this is the only time that you want them to do that.
But seriously: Men, the tournament should serve as a good reminder of how passionate we should be about our wives. If we can cheer with passion for a school we’ve never heard of then surely we can make time to treat our wives special. And wives, just enjoy this time with us. Let us gloat about the picks we got right without asking about the ones we missed. 
What about you? Do you and your spouse watch the tournament together? What about those of you in other countries? Do you have similar events that tend to separate the men and women? Tell us in the comments!
We have a new home!
The Marriage is Fun blog has moved. The good news is that your at our new home now, so no need to take any action. (Well, you could take your shoes off, but that’s optional.)
One of my goals in starting this blog was to learn some new things about blogging software. The site was initially hosted at blogger and now runs on WordPress. So that is basically the reason for the move. I won’t bore you with the details, but I wanted to thank you for visiting. I’m glad you found us!
Monday Meet and Greet: Best Surprise?
This week’s Meet and Greet question is designed to give us all ideas on things we can do for our spouses. Feel free to provide as much or as little detail as you wish. You can be anonymous or you can tell us who you are. (Introduce us to your blog if you want.)
Here is this week’s question:
Has your spouse ever surprised you wonderfully? What did they do?
Conversation Tips for Husbands
But seriously: The real question is this: do you really listen when your spouse is talking? This is critical for both men and women. Truly listening to someone shows respect for that person. Are you listening?
Monday Meet and Greet: Where did you meet?
This week’s Meet and Greet question is quite simple. Feel free to answer it with one word or tell us your whole story! So don’t be shy. Tell us a little bit about you!
Here is this week’s question:
Where did you meet your spouse?
Household Project Timeline Calculator
- If you feel that the kitchen needs to be remodled but your husband doesn’t see the need then it may be time to call a contractor (and a marriage counselor.)
- If a toilet is messed up and your husband is not good at plumbing you had better hope that he has a friend that is good at plumbing or you’ll be using one of the other toilets for a while.
- If your car is overheating and your husband is good at fixing cars you don’t have to worry about a thing.
Monday Meet and Greet: Seven Dwarfs?
Last week I started a new item on this blog called the Monday Meet and Greet. The goal is to learn a little bit about each other.
All you have to do is answer one simple question. You can answer it anonymously or you can introduce yourself to us. You can even plug your blog if you want.
Here is this week’s question:
If your spouse were one of the seven dwarfs, which one would he/she be?
(Dopey, Grumpy, Doc, Happy, Bashful, Sneezy, Sleepy)
What Does Kindness Mean to Married Couples?
The definition of kindness can vary depending upon your state in life. For a toddler it may be sharing a piece of candy. For a homeless person it may be a quick meal or a warm place to sleep. For a student it may be bonus points or dropping their lowest score.
But what about married people? What constitutes kindness between spouses? Here are a few examples of kindness:
- Eating those first-year dinners without making a face or complaining
- Putting the toilet seat down (or up, see related post)
- Remembering to put gas in the vehicle
- Laughing at his jokes
- Not keeping track of how many pairs of shoes she owns
- Washing his socks even if it requires wearing a chemical suit to handle them
- Listening to her explain every last detail of the day (Yes, it is important to know what every person in the story is wearing)
- Accepting those anniversary flowers a few days after the actual anniversary
But seriously: Kindness may not be one of the traits we think of for establishing a great marriage, but just try to have a great marriage without it. It would be impossible. Are we sometimes guilty of showing kindness to everyone except our spouse? What is one way you can show your spouse kindness today?
Can you think of other actions that married couples do to show kindness? Add your thoughts in the comments!
This post is a part of the One Word at a Time Blog Carnival. If you would like to see what other bloggers had to say about kindness today check out the carnival link page.
Monday Meet and Greet: Who Drives?
I’m starting something new on the Marriage is Fun blog. I’m calling it the Monday Meet and Greet. The goal is to hopefully learn a little bit about each other.
All you have to do is answer one simple question. You can answer it anonymously or you can introduce yourself to us. You can even plug your blog if you want.
So, without further ado, here is today’s question:
When you and your spouse go somewhere that requires driving, who usually drives?
Stop Nagging!
There is a fine line between nagging and reminding. If you have been married for more than one month, chances are you have found yourself bumping into that line.
So which do you do? Today’s post will provide some information that husbands generally keep to themselves. But since I care about marriages I plan to share that knowledge. After all, a wise man once said, “Knowledge is power!” (Ok, maybe that was from School House Rock, but I’m only a bill… on capitol hill.)
Today’s post is definitely from the husband’s viewpoint. I’ll have to ask that you ladies use the comments to let us men know when we are nagging. But before I divulge my theory I thought I would provide a few comments so you can test your ability. Which of these are nagging and which are simply good reminders?
- “Don’t forget today is trash day.”
- “The speed limit here is 40 mph.”
- “Are you going to fix the washer today?”
- “Our anniversary is tomorrow.”
How did you do? Could you tell the nagging from the friendly reminders? I bet our answers differ based on our perceptions.
Since I’m a man I like to keep things in simple formula’s and charts. With that in mind, here is my formula for determining the difference. (Item number two is the secret information I promised.)
Nag Determination Formula:
- If the speaker is the wife, 90% of the time it is nagging. If the husband is speaking, we’re just offering gentle reminders.
- If the task is something I really want to do, it’s a reminder. Otherwise, it’s nagging.
That sounds easy, doesn’t it? The tricky part is that you cannot always predict with certainty which items we may want to do. Some are easy – e.g. “Don’t forget tonight is poker night with your friends.” Some may be less so. It’s safe to say that I don’t want to do the taxes, but if tomorrow is the tax deadline I really do want to get them done. “Don’t forget to do the taxes” is thus nagging in February but a great reminder in April.
But seriously: What we are thinking at a particular moment always affects how we interpret information from others. The use of the word nagging is a great example. It can be humorous in some cases but it can also cause a lot of friction in a marriage. So next time you feel as if you are being nagged stop and consider if the other person is just trying to be helpful. And if you are offering a lot of reminders, take a step back and consider how your spouse may be feeling. The most important thing is to show respect to each other.
